Fire Vs. Water

I'm a Sagittarius and my eldest daughter is a Pisces. Given how drastic the difference is there, astrologically speaking, I think I've done rather well over her six years. I try to remember to be ever gentle in my tone, and she has taught me a lot in regards to patience and the like.

She's a well behaved child, don't get me wrong. But, she's still a child and, as such, is prone to doing things that might get under my skin (like literally put her face about 1/2 an inch in front of mine while she's talking to me, or having her moments when listening just isn't in the cards).

The little Virgo (my second daughter) and I tend to clash more often. But, my precious Pisces is far more sensitive in certain areas. So, I have to watch my tone with her more.

I was fortunate to have a number of close Pisces friends, prior to having my eldest daughter. With that experience, I was able to get some real life experience regarding exactly how our fire vs. water natures were most likely to clash.

Just last night though, I was reminded just how sensitive my little one can be.

I was sitting at the computer, sifting through email, when she came into the office. At first, she was merely playing in the room, but this escalated to her getting less than an inch away from my face, poking my shoulder, breathing heavily at me, and talking loudly.

I asked her to stop, multiple times, remembering to be gentle about it. But, enough was enough. I yelled her name. I got her attention, her face just about lost it's color when mommy's voice became that loud. And, I told her to stop what she was doing.

Almost immediately, simply because I yelled, she started to weep sadly. She then ran into the living room, slumped onto the couch, and continued to cry in the kind of way that just rips your heart out.

*Sigh*

Alas, it appears I still have work to do on softening my tone, somehow, when I'm dealing with her misbehaving. Yes, she needed to know that what she was doing was not okay. But, there has to be a way to do that, even with a sensitive child who can't stand knowing she's in trouble, without hearing that heart-wrenching weeping.

It's very interesting to me, the way our personalities clash, get along, or otherwise interact, particularly when it comes to the ones who are dearest to our hearts - our children.

More Resources For Pagan Parents...

Lady Bridget's Pagan Parents Page is filled with lots of fun ideas for teaching Pagan values, rituals, etc. to children. It also has great stories, poems, etc. and a list of suggested reading material for Pagan kids.

Pagan Parents is a great site, that looks promising. There are links to articles on Pagan parenting, what your rights are, etc.

Your rights as a Pagan Parent. This is an article posted on About.com. Particularly if you're divorcing a non-Pagan spouse who may prove vindictive, or if you may find yourself involved in other legal issues regarding your children and your religion, this may prove exceedingly useful, perhaps even indispensable.

Mamawitch's Pagan parenting pages. This site is currently (as of late September, 2008) under reconstruction by Mamawitch. So, some of the pages may be blank, but it still promises to be a very interesting site, with projects for kids to do, a family book of shadows, and much more.

Care2 - A leaning tree for Pagan parents is an online support group for Pagan Parents.

Edmonton Pagan Parents Circle. This site is extensive, with many articles, resources, fun stories, etc. geared specifically toward Pagan families.

The Blessed Bee is a Pagan family newsletter.

Moon Dragon's Pagan Parenting Partnership is a very interesting site, with wonderful articles on the subject, and some awesome links toward the bottom of the page. I can't recommend this site enough!

And, finally, Solitary-Pagan.net.

I hope you find the above resources as great as I do. :)

The Meaning of Life, From the Thoughtful Perspective of a Child

Before I became a full-time mommy, I worked in a private daycare center. I handled all age groups, ranging from 8 weeks to 8 years of age.

One day, one particular 8 year old was really grating on my last nerve. She just wouldn't behave, and it was making life stressful for not only the teachers and T.A.'s, but also the younger children.

Finally, I just could not take it anymore. So, I told her to sit in time out. She pushed me to tell her for how long she would have to sit there, so I said, "Until you can tell me the meaning of life!"

Now, I wasn't honestly going to have her sit there all day. Technically, we weren't allowed to have them sit in time out for longer then five minutes at a time. I just needed time to cool off, and for her to know that she couldn't get away with whatever it was she was doing (this was 7 years ago or so, I don't remember the exact offense).

A few moments later, she called me over. She told me that she had figured out the answer to my question. I was a little more then skeptical that an 8 year old had figured out the meaning of life, but I did tell her that she could get out of time out by giving my a pensive answer, so I awaited her response.

"To live," she told me. It was so simple, and yet so very compelling. My irritation with her antics faded quickly. I thought about her answer for a few seconds, and told her she could get out of time out and go play.

To live. The more I thought about it, the more her answer not only made more sense then anything I'd heard from a great many philosophers and intelligent adults, but it also brought more peace. From the lips of a rebellious child to my ears - The meaning of life is to live.

A Boy/Girl Scouts Alternative For Pagan Parents

We all want our children to have fun growing up, socialize, get involved in extra curricular activities, etc. But, as a Pagan parent, some programs may be shut off, or not coincide with what we want for our kids.

The boy scouts and girl scouts, for instance, are supposed to only accept children from families that proclaim a belief in one supreme God, and no others. This can be a bit of an issue for kids and parents that do not adhere to one of the big three Abrahamic based faiths.

This is why I was thrilled to discover the Spiral Scouts. They were formed as an alternative specifically for Pagan parents. They are co-ed, and seperated by age group. There are "dens" so to speak all over the place, though they are still fairly new, so there aren't as many as there are boyscout meeting locations.

They accept children and parents from all walks of life, so even non-pagans can benefit from the program. And, it just looks plain fun! I found a group of spiralscouts not too terribly far from where I live, so I'll be looking into it further, and testing it out with my little ones. When I have a bit more personal experience with them, I'll be sure to update you all on what I've found.

In the mean time, this is a quote directly from their website:

"SpiralScouts™ International is a program for girls and boys of all faiths working, growing and learning together. Making its public debut in February of 2001, SpiralScouts™ International has grown into an expanded program available to anyone world wide. We now serve youth throughout the US, as well as in Canada and Europe. "

And, you can take a peek for yourself, and find a group meeting near you, here... http://spiralscouts.org/

Welcome to my Blog!

My name is Larisa, and I am a Pagan parent (gee, do you feel like you're at a "Pagans Anonymous" meeting yet? lol). I have two beautiful little girls, who I stay home with, the eldest of which I'm homeschooling. They are 6 and 3, respectively.

In this blog, I'm going to be mainly sticking with issues that are of particular interest to Pagan parents. I'll be reviewing various programs, discussing news stories, movies, etc. that I think might strike your fancy. If there is anything you'd like me to write about, advice I may be able to provide (having personal experience with being a single Pagan mother of two), etc. please don't hesitate to contact me with that, and I will do my best to provide you with whatever I can that might help.